and car was going along alright for about 5 mins then it felt like I was driving with the handbrake on a car was slowing down in 5th gear so changed to 4th but still didn't feel like it was accelerating properly, then I looked in the wing mirror and could see loads of smoke coming out of exhaust so turned off main road and into village where my dad lives and got him to look at it, he said it was misfiring a bit and could be a bit damp, the engine warning light is on now.
What could be wrong with it? Luckily I had a service booked for Fri but its 50 miles away hope I get there
Are you in the AA or RAC or whatever? If you are, it might be an idea to get them to look at it. You might make a bad problem a whole lot worse driving it 50 miles.
Then provided you have "At Home" cover you should give then a call ... they can at least assess the problem and may be able to suggest an approved local repairer who will give you a reasonable quote.... if you don't have "At Home" you coud upgrade your membership as they still may well be cheaper than going to the garage without knowing whats what ... some mechanics have a tendancy to over exaggerate x